Philippa Brant

Philippa Brant is a former Research Associate working to the Research Director. Her research interests include Chinese aid, development in the Asia-Pacific region, and China as a global actor. She wrote her Ph.D. at The University of Melbourne investigating China’s foreign aid program and its implications for the global development system, including a focus on the South Pacific region. As an inaugural Prime Minister’s Australia Asia Endeavour Award holder (2010-2011), Philippa worked in Beijing as a Visiting Scholar at the International Poverty Reduction Centre in China (IPRCC) and an intern in the Health and Nutrition Division at UNICEF China.

Philippa also holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Asian Studies and International Relations and a Diploma of Modern Languages (Chinese) from The University of Melbourne.

Articles by Philippa Brant (29)

With the signing of the AIIB's Articles of Agreement in Beijing yesterday, how is the Bank shaping up? Here are some key things that struck me reading the Agreement:
Membership
The Bank's members are split into two groups: regional and non-regional. Regional members include those countries classified by the UN as being in Asia or Oceania.

Much is being made of Xi Jinping's visit to Pakistan and the reported US$46 billion worth of deals being signed. This visit has been a long time in the making. It is the first visit to Pakistan by a Chinese president for nine years, and this one was itself delayed repeatedly.

Don't read too much into China's rejection of Taiwan's application to join the AIIB.
Like more than 40 others, Taiwan had applied to be a founding member of the Beiing-led Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank. China yesterday rejected this but says discussions are ongoing about Taiwan's membership of the Bank under 'an appropriate name', meaning 'Taipei, China' or 'Chinese Taipei', not 'the Republic of China' or 'Taiwan'.

More details emerged over the weekend about two Chinese big-ticket initiatives, 'One Belt, One Road' and Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB).
Speaking at the Boao Forum for Asia, President Xi Jinping outlined his vision for the region in a keynote address titled 'Towards a Community of Common Destiny and A New Future for Asia'.
The Boao Forum, held annually since 2001 in Hainan, has moved from being primarily a business and finance gathering to being regarded as a platform for Chinese

Last week the US State Department released a useful report on China's maritime claims in the South China Sea. As M Taylor Fravel tweeted, it is a must-read for anyone interested in maritime security, the law of the sea, or China's foreign policy.
The report focuses on China's so-called 'nine-dashed line' and the different interpretations of what China may be seeking to claim through it. What makes this issue particularly difficult is that China hasn't specified its maritime claims.

The debate about whether Australia should join the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has gone beyond the realm of economic development and investment to hit at the core of Australia's apparent security dilemma.
The initial concern revolved around the governance arrangements and whether Australia should be part of a new China-led regional development bank.

I was in Fiji last week to get an update on Chinese assistance to the country, as part of a larger project I'm doing mapping Chinese aid activities in the Pacific islands, to be launched in early 2015.
Navua Hospital, built with Chinese aid assistance, Fiji.

At the upcoming APEC Summit in Beijing, China is hoping to announce a formal MoU for the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB). Offers to join the Bank have been sent around the region, including to Australia. So should Australia sign on?
Little is publicly known about how the Bank would work. According to reports, the initial capital for the bank will be US$50 billion, financed by members and by issuing bonds.

China's Peace Ark hospital ship is finishing up its four-week visit to the Pacific islands. Its tour covered Tonga, Fiji, Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea and was an important step in improving China's image in the region.
Part of the People's Liberation Army Navy (PLAN), the ship is staffed by over 100 medical personnel and equipped with 300 beds, eight operating rooms and over 200 types of medical devices.